UK to Outline Comprehensive Measures on Israeli West Bank Settlements
Britain's Planned Response to Israeli Settlements
Announcement of Upcoming Measures
LONDON, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Britain will set out a "comprehensive" package of measures on Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank in the coming weeks, Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said on Tuesday.
Concerns Over the E1 Settlement Project
Miliband told lawmakers that Israel's E1 settlement project would cut across land which the Palestinians seek for a state and "risks making a Palestinian state unviable".
Commitment to the Two-State Solution
"This government will not acquiesce in the destruction of the two-state solution," he said. "We will act and I will set out a comprehensive set of measures in the coming weeks."
International and Domestic Reactions
European Criticism and Trade Ban Considerations
Britain and other European nations have criticised Israel's plans, while Prime Minister Andy Burnham said before taking office that he was "looking at measures to ban trade in goods with illegal settlements".
U.S. Monitoring of UK Actions
The Times reported on Monday that U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is "closely" tracking any plans to introduce a trade ban.
(Reporting by William James, writing by Sam Tabahriti and Sam Tobin)
